Golf tee setting devices



1960 M. A. SLOTTA EI'AL 2,950,110

com TEIE; sw ms mavxcas Filed Nov. 12, 1957 I INV Tons,

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' mmrdzw ma Tinned States Patent a GOLF TEE SETTING DEVICES Max A. Slotta, 5220 29th Ave. S., and Edward Lavicka, Sr., '6213 th Ave. N., both of St. Petersburg, Fla.

Filed Nov. 12, 1957, Ser. No. 695,860

5 Claims. (Cl. 273-33) The present invention relates to golf tee setters and has for its main object the provision of a tee setter providedwith means for predeterminedly regulating the depth to which a golf tee is to be driven into the ground, thereby selectively adjusting the distance of a tee head from the ground for supporting a golf ball at any selected height from the ground.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a tee setter of the character hereinabove indicated, which may include an oblong hand piece supporting at one of its ends a longitudinally adjustable member for predeterminedly adjusting the extent to which a tee is to be driven into the ground when the tee is engaged by said head and pressed by said hand piece in a longitudinal direction to drive the tee into the ground.

A still further object of the present invention is the provision of a suitable means at the end of the hand piece aforesaid for engaging a tee head and for maintaining the tee in a proper longitudinal relation with the hand piece, when aided by a golfers finger preparatory to the exertion of a manual pushing force at the handle in a longitudinal direction downwardly towards the ground for driving the pointed stern of the tee into the ground, with adjustable means for selectively predetermining the extent to which the pointed stem of the tee is to be driven into the ground, thereby predeterrnining the distance from the ground at which a golf ball is to be supported by the tee head.

With the above general objects in view and others that will appear as the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing forming a part of this application, and in which like designating characters refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational View, partly in section, of the present device; V

Fig. 2 is a bottom elevational view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view on line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of the device when supported in a golfers hand preparatory to the driving of a tee into the ground; and

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of a number of tees driven into the ground to various predetermined depths by the aid of the present device, for maintaining a golf ball upon a tee at a desired distance from the ground as may be predetermined by the present device, one tee showing a golf ball supported upon its head in a usual manner.

Referring in detail to the present drawing there is shown a tee setting device which includes an oblong hand piece 10, which is of a substantially rectangular formation, throughout its length, as is best shown in Fig. 3. The free end of said hand piece is engaged by band 11, from which a pocket engaging clip 12 projects in a longitudinal relation with hand piece 10, whereby the device may be engaged with a pocket rim in a golfers clothing, to be carried therein when not in use.

The opposite end of said hand piece 10 has an enlarged, integrally formed head 13, which on transverse cross section is of a circular formation. One wall of Said hand piece is arcuate, as at 14, which merges with ice a corresponding portion of the arcuate periphery of said circular head 13, as is seen in Figs. 1 and 3.

With relation to said hand piece 10 said head 13 defines a pair of oppositely disposed lateral oifsets 15 and an intermediate central oifset 16, the latter being substantially at a diametrical juxtaposition with relation to the arcuate portion of the periphery of said head 13 with which the arcuate wall 14 of said hand piece 11) merges.

Made in said head 13 and said hand piece 10, adjacent said arcuate wall 14 of the latter is a longitudinal inwardly threaded bore 17, for receiving therewithin in a threaded relation threaded screw rod or stem 18, the outer end of which carries a flat knob head 19, the rim of which is knurled to facilitate rotation thereof. Manual rotation of said knob head 19 to one or the opposite direction will cause said screw stem 18 to shift inwardly or outwardly of bore 17 for shifting said knob head 19 towards or away from the end of said head 13. Lock nut 20 in threaded engagement with the screw stem 18 may be rotated by a golfers finger brushing it against the knurled edge of said lock nut 20 for engaging the latter with the end of head 13 and thereby locking the screw stem 18 and knob head 19 in the adjusted position of the latter with said head 13. Portion of the rim of said lock nut 20 extends beyond the periphery of said head 13, oppositely of the merged arcuate wall 14 of hand piece 10, for facilitating rotation of said lock nut 20 in either direction, as is seen in Figs. 1 and 3.

Made at the free end of head 13, at a point diametrically opposite of said bore 17, is a sector-like recess 21 which is open along the plane coincidental with the bottom face of said head 13.

Said recess 21 is also'open along the portion of the periphery of said head 13, intennediately of the radial walls of the body portion of said head 13 adjacent the lateral sides of said recess 21, as is clearly seen in Figs. 2 and 4.

Receivable within said recess 21 is head 22 of tee 23. Said recess 21 is suiiiciently wide for accommodating said head 22 and for causing a portion of the periphery of said head 22 to extend beyond the peripheral wall of head 13. The extending portion of the periphery of said head 22 beyond the periphery of head 13 may be engaged and pressed by the index finger 24 of golfers hand 25, for maintaining the tee head 22 in a rigid position within said recess 21 while manual pressure is being exerted by the hand upon hand piece 10, in a longitudinal direction, as is seen in Fig. 4, for shifting said hand piece 10 towards the ground and thereby exerting a pressure upon the tee head 22 for driving tee 23 into the ground. This operation will continue until knob head 19 comes in contact with ground 26. Once said knob head 19 comes in contact with ground 26 the former will con stitute means for limiting further shifting movement of hand piece 10 in a downward direction and thereby for preventing further driving of tee 23 into the ground. Adjusting the distance of the knob head 19 from the adjacent end of head 13 by rotating the same to one or the opposite direction, as was hereinabove stated, and thereupon shifting lock nut 20 in engagement with head 13, for locking knob head 19 in its adjusted relation with said head 13, will maintain said knob head 19 in its adjustedrelation with head 13 and thereby in its predetermined adjusted relation with tee 23 for driving the latter into the ground to the distance as may be predetermined by the adjusted knob head 19.

Made in a portion of the periphery of head 13, at its offset 16, and which is disposed adjacent the lateral wider open end of recess 21, is a depression 27, as is seen in Figs. 2 and 3, for permitting a corresponding rim por tion of head 22 of tee 23 to extend beyond the lateral surface defined by said depression 27 for facilitating the engagement of said rim portion of head 22 by a golfers 1nde x finger 24, as is seen in Fig. 4 for thereby maintaming said head 22 in its operative position within said recess 21 preparatory to the driving the tee into the ground.

The required depth to which the stem of tee 23 may be predetermined in advance of driving the stem into the ground. As is obvious from the showing in Fig. 4, the depth to which the stem of tee 23 may be driven into the ground is measured by the distance from a point on the stem which is on a horizontal plane coincidental with the outer face of knob head 19 to the pointed tip of the stem.

In Fig. 5 there is a number of tees 23 driven into the ground to various predetermined depths by the aid of the present device, with one of the tees supporting a golf ball 28 in the usual manner.

It is further observed that after the tee stem has been driven into the ground as far as said knob head 19 will permit hand piece and head 13 are lifted in an up ward longitudinal direction for removing head 22 from within said recess 21.

Although the lateral open end of said recess 21 through the periphery of said head 13 is made primarily for the purpose of causing a rim portion of head 22 to extend laterally of said head 13 to be engaged by a golfers finger preparatory to the driving of the tee stem into the ground, it is to be understood that the lateral wall of said recess 21 may be rounded for frictionally engaging the rim of head 22.

The suggested modification of the shape of recess 21 whereby the body portion of head 13 adjacent said recess 21 may fiictionally engage the rim portion of the tee head 22, will bring about a frictional connection between said head 13 and tee 23 for maintaining the latter in a longitudinal relation with hand piece 10 preparatory to the driving of the tee stem into the ground. Such a frictional connection between head 13 and the tee head 22 need not be sufiiciently strong so as to prevent ready disengagement of head 13 with the tee head 22 for lifting of hand piece 10 in upward direction from tee 23 once the stem of the latter has been driven into the ground.

The primary purpose of making hand piece 10 of a reduced thickness on transverse plane with relation to head 13 is to facilitate easy engagement of said hand piece 10 by the golfers hand preparatory to the driving of the tee stem into the ground. This however is not i an essential feature of the device. For this reason hand piece 10 and its head 13 may be broadly considered as coextensive on transverse plane, with head 13 deemed as one end of said hand piece 10. The essential parts of the device is a recess such as recess 21 made at the end of the hand piece for engaging the tee head preparatory to driving of the tee stem into the ground, and a ground-engaging member, such as stem 18, mounted upon or coacting with the same end of the hand piece.

While there is described herein a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is nevertheless to be understood that minor changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

What we claim as new is:

1. In a device for driving a golf tee stem into the ground to a predetermined depth, including an oblong hand piece provided at one of its ends with a recess for accommodating therewithin the head of a golf tee for supporting the tee in a longitudinal operative position with relation to the hand piece preparatory to the driving of the tee stem into the ground on application of pressure upon the hand piece in a longitudinal direction, a screw rod in a threaded Y 4 relative to the hand piece for bringing about a substantially parallel relation between said screw rod and the tee when the latter remains in said longitudinal operative position with relation to the hand piece, normally a portion of the free end of the tee stem being capable of extending past the free end of said screw rod for insertion into the ground, the free end of said screw rod extending beyond the end of said hand piece thereby conditioning the free end of the latter to come in contact with the ground during the tee driving operation for preventing further driving of the tee stem into the ground, said screw rod being capable of rotary shifting in either direction for regulating the length of said screw rod for thereby adjusting the depth to which the tee stem is to be driven.

2. A golf tee positioning device comprising, a unitary oblong hand piece, a longitudinally extending recess with a lateral opening therein to receive the head of the golf tee and hold said tee in a longitudinal operative position relative to said hand piece, a longitudinally extending bore in said hand piece laterally spaced from said recess, a rod adjustably received within said bore and extending beyond the end of the hand piece to engage the ground for limiting the depth to which the tee is inserted into the ground, and means for locking said rod in a predetermined position.

3. A golf tee positioning device comprising, a unitary oblong hand piece, a longitudinally extending recess with a lateral opening therein to receive the head of a golf tee and hold said tee in a longitudinal operative position relative to said hand piece, a longitudinally extending bore in said hand piece laterally spaced from said recess, said bore having threads therein, and a screw rod adjustably received within said bore and extending a predetermined length beyond the end of the hand piece .to engage the ground for limiting the depth to which the tee is inserted into the ground.

4. A golf tee positioning device as claimed in claim 3 including means to lock the screw rod in an adjusted position.

5. A device for driving a golf tee stem into the ground to a predetermined depth, including an oblong hand piece provided at one or its ends with a recess for accommodating therewithin the head of a golf tee for supporting the tee in a longitudinal operative position with relation to the hand piece preparatory to driving the tee stem into the ground on application of pressure upon the hand piece in a longitudinal direction, a rod member depending in a longitudinal relation from the end of said hand piece at which said recess is located, said rod member being in a spaced relation with said recess on a transverse plane relative to the hand piece for effecting a substantially parallel relation between said rod member and the tee when the latter remains in said longitudinal operative position with relation to the hand piece, normally a portion of the free .end of the tee stem extending past the free end of said rod member for insertion into the ground, the free end of said rod member extending beyond the end of said hand piece to come: into contact with the ground for preventing further driving of the tee stem into the ground, and means for regulating the length of said rod member for thereby adjusting the depth to which the tee stem is to be driven.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,163,035 Pope et a1 Dec. 7, 1915 1,558,740 Mallory Oct. 27, 1925 1,902,682 Walrath Mar. 21, 1933 2,606,764 Mason Aug. 12, 1952 2,801,852 Hottle Aug. 6, 1957 2,901,146 Powell et al Aug. 25, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 270,155 Great Britain 1927 

